Y'all, the "Bloody Nose" bonus is NOT canon. Doesn't effect the story. 

Third person pov

The classroom is empty when Harper enters. She came early on purpose. Plunging straight into a small hoard of worried teenagers still coming down from the overall festival high wasn't something that appealed to her in any way. They'd all have questions about Sero that she didn't have answers to, and lying required more energy and brain power than she currently possessed. 

She'd spent the whole weekend talking to both All Might and Tsukauchi, and while chatting with them and seven disembodied voices wasn't as bad as standing in a stadium filled with thousands of screaming thoughts, it was still enough to drain her. Though, it did help distract her from the horrors that had leaked from Endeavor's mind. She still shivered thinking about it. She was pretty sure she was developing a fear of fire. He'd genuinely managed to traumatize her just by thinking what were probably his usual thoughts.

Harper took her seat with a sigh. The bags under her eyes were a lot deeper than they were the day before. Half of it was Iida's fault, actually. She'd legitimately gone out of her way to text him a few times only to be completely and totally ignored. It was... worrying. She didn't think he was dead. If he were, news would have somehow reached her, whether it be through Tsukauchi or All Might himself, him being a teacher and all. But no. It was radio silence all around. 

She could hear Aizawa down the hall in the teacher's lounge, his bubbly thoughts doting over Mic and today's pending lesson. Listening in, Harper had to grimace. Hero names. How the hell was she supposed to come up with one of those? With Sero gone, it was time to get serious and start focusing more on becoming a hero she guessed. Seeing as she was in the hero course and all. Even if she wanted to back out now, it was far too late. The League had their eyes on her without a doubt. After all, she'd called Sero out on live television. A dumbass move, but she wasn't about to face the guy in a fight. Maybe forfeiting would have been a smart move. Probably, but it was too late now.

Harper felt Iida before she even got the chance to read his thoughts. This wall of dread and guilt slammed into her so hard she choked. Adjusting to such a sudden shift in the air was like trying to breathe under water. She was being strangled. Several coughs escaped her as she hunched over her desk, her eyes wide and breaths coming out ragged. She knew Iida didn't win first place in the Sports Festival, but he'd still placed from what she understood. Was she missing something? She had to have missed something. Why was he-

"This is my fault. My fault. My brother was watching me perform in the festival. He was distracted because he wanted to see me compete, and now he'll never be a hero again. I took away his passion. The hero killer got to him. I-I shouldn't have- why did this happen? I don't understand. Why? Why would someone do that to a person? Now, Tensei is... Tensei is... I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do." Iida's thoughts were stuttered and choppy, and almost teary in a way. Harper's eyes widened.

Tsukauchi had been stuck on the Hero Killer case for months. It was locked up tight, so she tried not to pry into his thoughts when he was doing any paperwork relating to the case. It was sensitive, and she understood that. But she knew the assassin was running around killing heroes he thought were 'unworthy'. It was all over the news, after all. Tensei Iida, better known to the public as Ingenium, was Tenya's brother. His biggest source of inspiration, and without a doubt the reason he was here trying to be a hero. Was it possible... no, that's definitely what had happened. Tensei had been crippled by the Hero Killer. He was, as Iida had mentally stated, paralyzed.

The door swung open, snapping her from her thoughts. Her wide brown eyes met Iida's surprised blue ones. He was normally the first person in the room. Honestly, Harper was shocked just looking at him. Any grief he was feeling had been tucked away deep inside to stew. His face was kept expertly blank, the emotion he didn't want showing staying locked up where nobody could see it. She gaped just slightly at him. 

"Ah, good morning, Harper. I didn't expect to see you so early. I'm usually the first one in." He said, as though nothing were wrong. His voice was a bit quieter than usual, but Harper wouldn't have noticed if not for her invasive quirk. She watched her tall friend's brows furrow with miniscule confusion as she stared. "Are you alright?"

"Am... Am I alright?" Harper croaked out before she could stop herself as Iida's thoughts cracked and wailed. She stood up, her seat giving a screeching against the linoleum tile in protest. "Am I okay? Iida... Iida, you..."

Iida looked nervous all of a sudden, but he covered it well with faux confusion. As though he had no idea what she were talking about. As though he could bottle it all up and be just fine. And hey, maybe Harper was being influenced by the heavy sadness resting over him, but how could she not be? Nobody should have to hold onto what Iida was at this very moment. It wasn't healthy, and shouldn't have been possible. How had he not snapped? 

"What is it?" Iida asked, raising his eyebrows to add to the effect. "She can't know. It's not set to hit the press until later today."

Harper didn't have the voice to respond. Briskly, she approached. She was never one for hugs. Her parents would try to hug her, but she'd just stand there awkwardly with her arms hanging at her sides. The most they'd get from her was a bump of her head on their shoulder just briefly before she was trying to reel back and away. But now, Harper couldn't stop herself from throwing her arms around a rather tense Tenya and squeezing as hard as she could. Which wasn't a lot, but he needed a hug. He just felt so full of despair. So hopeless and despondent. 

Iida stayed frozen for a moment, his entire body rigid with surprise. "I... I thought I was hiding it quite well. How did she still manage to notice? I didn't think anyone would. It... It must have shown on my face more than I thought. I-I.... I-I can't-- she can't-"

She heard Iida sniffle, and then choke out a sob almost immediately after. Harper hugged him tighter, which was really all it took for the dam to break. The tension fell away from his body as though he were shedding a layer of himself. He slouched into her, his arms wrapping around her and engulfing her fully. She just let it happen. Physical contact wasn't something she usually enjoyed, but right now she was glad to serve as a source of comfort if that's what Iida needed. It wasn't that he had nobody to share his burdens with. He had friends and family that would gladly allow him to cry on their shoulder.

But he simply wasn't going to confide in them. So for Iida's sake, Harper was going to have to force him to spill at least some of it onto her. He didn't want to, and she didn't like it, but they both had to deal with it. Because she absolutely could not watch him drown. He was gasping and begging for air, but not willing to swim to the surface to get it. Harper would drag him to the top of the pool every damn time if that's what it took. She'd seen people who'd already lost the battle before. Iida was close. So, so, so painfully close, but he wasn't there yet. And until he was, Harper would do whatever she damn well had to in order to keep him from reaching that point.

At some point Aizawa peeked in, but he was quick to make a silent retreat when he saw what was happening. Harper felt completely and totally done as she stood there. The man only sent her an overly cheerful smile unlike any she'd ever seen on his face before, sliding back out of the room and soundlessly closing the door behind him. 

"Good work, Harper!" His thoughts chirped from outside the door. "You know, I haven't smiled like that at anyone in a long time, so don't tell! Good job getting Iida to release some of that bottled up emotion! Poor kiddo needs to cry sometimes. I'll guard the door, so tell me when you're done! Also, have you seen Mic today? He's hot and like, I just thought you should know and stuff. I also got here early to anonymously put muffins in the teacher's lounge! Nobody knows I made them. Isn't that hilarious? You should come get one later! They're sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo good!" 

Harper tried her best not to start crying too.

"It's okay, Iida." She murmured instead, patting his back the best she could. "You're going to be okay. It's all going to be just fine."

"I-I-It's my fau-fault." He hiccuped, but the cloud hanging around him felt lighter. It was a relief.

"It's not. You had no way of knowing that would happen, and Tensei doesn't blame you. You did nothing wrong." Harper continued patting his back. He seemed to like it enough, so it was probably the right thing to do? She was used to listening to people break down. Not helping them out of their break downs.

"H-He wants me t-to take his hero name." Iida sputtered suddenly, his hands gripping the back of her shirt tightly. "I'm not worthy. I don't deserve it. Tensei should be the one carrying the Ingenium name, not me. The Hero Killer took it from him. He took it, a-and-" 

"Iida, he knows you'll do it justice. That's why he wants you to be the next Ingenium." Harper rolled some more sentimental shit she could possibly say around in her head. What sounded the most comforting? "You've got to stay strong, from him and for yourself. This isn't easy for anyone, but you'll get through it. It'll be alright. Your brother is still here."

"They said he'll never be a hero again. H-He's paralyzed from the waist down." Iida whispered, pulling back to look down at her. His eyes were red and puffy, and his cheeks sticky with tears. He looked more vulnerable than she'd ever seen him. All the pain he kept behind closed doors had been drawn out and put on display. Harper had no regrets. Well, maybe she had a few, but this was worth it. She'd do it again in a heartbeat. Because if she hadn't, she wasn't sure what would happen to Iida. Though she'd only begun to talk to him to prevent him from doing something he'd regret later, she'd begun to consider him a good friend.

"Iida, there are a lot of ways to help people. And not all of them require your legs." Harper tried to smile. She wasn't sure how it came out looking, but it couldn't be that bad if Iida's calming nerves were anything to go off of. "Everything will be fine. Your brother clearly has a lot of faith in you if he offered you his name. He sounds like a great guy."

"He is." Iida muttered, dropping his head and bringing up a hand so he could wipe at his eyes. Harper took a small step back, holding her breath as she dug into his thoughts again. "I... I guess Harper has a point. I wasn't there. I couldn't have known that would happen. I just... wish..."

Better than before, that's for sure. Harper would honestly take anything at this point.

Iida collected himself. He seemed a bit flustered over the fact that he'd broken down, but Harper didn't mention it as he got settled in his desk and wiped any remaining tears off his face. She quietly made her way to the door and opened it, poking her head out. Only Shoto was waiting outside, Aizawa leaning against the wall by the door to stop anyone from coming in. They both turned to look at her as she stepped out and closed the door behind her. 

"How is he? It's because of Tensei, isn't it? That poor baby! Thank you for giving him a hug!" Aizawa chirped inwardly. On the outside, his face was kept expertly blank. All he did was cock a brow to silently punctuate the questions he'd mentally asked her.

"Iida's alright. And yeah, you know why." Harper tried to word it as though she weren't replying to something someone had already said. Todoroki didn't seem to care about their business, his eyes already back on his book. Though his mind was elsewhere, stuck on something his father had said about internships this morning. Everything within Harper soured. Poor Todoroki had absolutely no idea just what he was living with. 

They gave Iida another few minutes before letting Todoroki into the room. Aizawa disappeared off the the Teacher Work room. Harper went back to her seat. She could tell Iida was grateful she didn't show any signs of pity towards him. Were she in his shoes, she really wouldn't want anyone to feel sorry for her either.

The class began to slowly trickle in. As predicted, almost all of them asked about Sero. She told them what she could, which wasn't a lot. A lot of it was actually the truth. No, she didn't know where he was, she had no idea how he was doing, and even she wasn't that sure what had happened down in the festival arena. It had, truly, all happened quite fast. She could tell they were disappointed by the lack of information given, but they accepted it all the same and offered her smiles she struggled to return and comfort she didn't need.

"Harper!" Kirishima exclaimed when he barreled into the room. She shifted her gaze to him, raising her eyebrows. Watching him freeze up was actually pretty amusing. "Crap, I didn't think this far ahead! She's looking at me. Man, she looks so tired. I brought her a donut, but is that weird? What if she doesn't want it?"

"Hey, Kirishima." Harper wanted that donut.

"O-Oh, morning. How are you?" Kirishima managed to sputter out, his face going red. "Oh my god, why am I like this?"

"Poor Kiri. That's so sad." Mina's thoughts crooned in a morose tone. "Alexa, play Despacito."

"Wow, he's got it bad. Poor guy." Sato shook his head slightly.

"That was just sad." Jiro snorted.

"Holy shit, Deku is cute as hell. Little annoyingly perfect fuck face. I need to write another note. he's definitely forgotten about my other, shittier one." Bakugo was in deep thought about Izuku once again, glaring at him as he obliviously rattled off to Iida and Uraraka about something All Might related. His thoughts were also painfully unaware of the pining blonde across the room.

"I'm alright. Hungry as hell." Harper was digging for it. "You? Heard you tied with Discount Kirishima in the finals at one point."

"Y-Yeah, it was pretty crazy. I'm great, and like- uh, have a... a-an extra donut, if you... want it." Kirishima flushed. Inwardly, he mourned. "I'm being so unmanly! I need to pull myself together."

"Sure, if you're not going to eat it." Harper shrugged. Score. The redhead lit up considerably, retrieving not one, but two donuts from his backpack and presenting them to her. Along with a bottle of orange juice. So basically, Kirishima was indeed god. This was proof. You couldn't get any better than this. Two donuts, both with chocolate frosting, one with sprinkles. Still fluffy and warm.

"Here you go." He grinned toothily at her, eyes shining. "This is like almost the best day ever! The best day ever was when Harper hugged me at the festival. I mean, I know she was sort of forced into that, but it still happened!"

"I owe you my life." Harper responded in somewhat of a mumble, but it was in all seriousness. She watched Kirishima's eyes grow wide. She didn't have the energy for this, but at least she'd gotten donuts out of it. "Are you sure you don't want one?"

"I-I already had one." He sputtered. "Owes me her life? Marriage? I mean obviously not, but I have a one-track mind these days man! Oh my god. This is going to follow me all day, and I'm fine with that."

Aizawa came in, and Kirishima blurted out a flurry of words before rushing off to dive into his seat so he could bury his face in his hands. Harper took a bite out of the donut without sprinkles and almost melted. This sure beat Tsukauchi's sorry attempt at pancakes-- no offense to him. His cooking skills just weren't up to par was all. He'd lived off takeout too long. Harper could cook alright, but was too lazy to most of the time. Recently, she'd been forced to. Tsukauchi would poison them both otherwise.

"No eating in the classroom." Aizawa said, eyes narrowing at her. Inwardly, he was anything but hostile. "No, feel free to eat! Ignore me! I'm doing this all for appearances. Isn't that fun? I think so. You better still try my muffins later, or I'll... I'll... I don't actually know. Cry. Or hug you. No, wait, I'll do both!" 

Harper flipped him off, earning a few gasps and a mental "oh my god, I'm so in love" from Kirishima. Aizawa just scoffed at her and rolled his eyes as though annoyed. Harper rolled hers right back. Fake asshole.

"Whatever. We have a big class today on Hero Informatics." Aizawa drawled. "Hero names! So exciting. I can't wait to see what they pick. Izuku can be Bunny. Harper, you can be... I don't know, actually! I should ask Mic. He chose my name. Isn't that amazing? That's when I knew I was in love."

Dread washed over the class. 

"Pop quiz." Was where Shoji's mind immediately went.

"Fuuuuuck." Hagakure hissed quietly. "I didn't study like... anything."

"Yeet me into the void, Dark Shadow. And make it snappy." Tokoyami apparently hadn't studied either.

"I don't have enough milk for this." Ochako was horrified.

"Oh boy! A pop quiz, maybe?" Izuku chirped happily. Harper pressed her lips together.

"Is Kaminari supposed to be sparking?" Momo thought distantly.

"I need to sneeze, but there's nothing fabulous about sneezing." Aoyama was oddly passionate about his opinion on sneezes. More power to him.

"You need code names." Aizawa said simply. "Time to pick your hero identities." 

Harper took another bite of her donut as the class erupted into cheers. A few hero names people had already decided on were thrown around mentally. Kirishima was excited, glancing back at her and wondering what hers was. Iida was gazing intently at his desk, his hands clenching and un-clenching in his lap. Kaminari's Wii remix had evolved so far that you could barely hear the Wii part anymore. It was so convoluted she that she almost couldn't pick out what it originally was. Koda was thinking about how you could probably murder Tsu with her own tongue, and Mineta was lusting after Bakugo, who was lusting after Midoriya, who was going through a series of All Might related hero names.

Aizawa's quirk flared to life, silencing the class effectively. "This is related to the pro-hero draft picks that I mentioned last time we were in class together. Normally, students don't have to worry about the draft yet. Not until their second or third year actually, but your class is different, as I warned you of in the past. In fact, by extending offers to first-years like you, pros are essentially investing in your potential. Any offers can be rescinded if their interest in you dies down before graduation, though." He explained.

"So what you're saying is that we'll still have to prove ourselves after we've gotten recruited." Hagakure stated unsurely. "Wh-What's that? The sound of my future getting fucked over? Wow, it sounds close. Almost as though it's in the not-so-distant future. Godspeed, brother."

"Correct." Aizawa nodded. "Now. Here are the totals for those who got offers so far." 

Todoroki got the most, with Bakugo lingering behind, just a few hundred off. Tokoyami was after that, Iida had just fifty-nine offers less than him. Kaminari had a surprising amount, then Momo, next Kirishima, afterwards was Uraraka, and lastly, Sero. She wasn't surprised not to see herself. Sure, she'd made it to the finals, but hadn't actually faced off against anyone. Her quirk wasn't flashy in the least, and she'd done just average in the first two events. Kirishima was vibrating with excitement. She gave him a thumbs up when he glanced back at her, causing him to light up happily.

"In the past years, it's been more spread out. But there's a pretty big gap this time." Aizawa noted. "I am so, so, so, so, so proud of all my kids! Look at them! O-M-G. Mic is gonna flip! This is so amazing. I love them. I hope they take pictures at their internships! I can see them now, saving people, wearing their hero costumes. Adorable!" 

"Gah! That's no fair!" Kaminari threw his head back, groaning loudly. More thought bled through the mutated remix. "I mean, at least I got any, but still!"

"What about the real star? Moi?" Aoyama asked, burying his face in his hands. "Blind! They were all too blinded by my dazzling nature to see it fully!"

"Oh my god, are you serious?! None?!" Mina mentally shrieked, jaw dropped in offense and shock.

"Todoroki got more than Bakugo?" Jiro blinked. "I guess it makes sense. Bakugo is pretty volatile. I mean, they had to chain him up at the end because he threw a fit. Even if he was first place, he wasn't nearly as level-headed as Todoroki, who displayed the versatility of his quirk. One side hot, one side cold. That's a lot of potential."

"Despite these results, you'll all be interning with pros. Got it? Even those of you who didn't get any offers." Aizawa looked over them all. His thoughts shrieked at Harper, nearly causing her to choke on the orange juice Kirishima had gifted her. "HARPER! Good, you're listening? You need to see me at lunch! I'll give you muffins. Oh, and I have to talk to you about something important. That too."

"Oh, so we're all interning?" Izuku blurted out. "I-I hope I can make All Might proud!"

"Yes. You already experienced villains during the attack on the USJ facility. But it'll still be helpful to see pros at work. Up close and personal, in the field. First hand." Aizawa waved a hand. 

"Yeah, some of us." Mineta scoffed, eyes shifting to Harper. "It's not like she knows what it's like. She wasn't even there!"

"Hey man, not cool." Kirishima immediately hopped to her defense. "I'm glad she wasn't there! I'd freak if she got hurt!"

"Yeah, I mean, I'm personally glad Harper didn't have to go through that. It was pretty scary, ribbit." Tsuyu said, shaking her head. "It was pretty dangerous. Mineta is such a little scumbag, ribbit."

"What Tsuyu said!" Hagakure and Mina both chimed. Harper felt oddly flattered, giving those who'd defended her the best thankful looks she could muster. They smiled in response, so she'd probably gotten it across.

"Quiet down. Harper has had her fair share of experiences with villains." Aizawa snapped irritably. Harper's gaze snapped to him, eyes going wide. She almost dropped her sprinkle donut in her surprise. "Uh oh. Wait. I wasn't supposed to say that." The man didn't outwardly show his panic. Harper pressed her lips together tightly. "Now, hero names. The ones you pick here today will most likely be temporary, but take them seriously or-"

"You'll have hell to pay later!" Midnight slammed the door open. "What you pick today could be your code name for life. You better be careful, or you'll be stuck with something utterly indecent." 

"Harper has dealt with villains?" Kirishima stared at her with concern. Several of her other classmates were doing the same. Harper grit her teeth, glowering at Aizawa. He spewed mental apologies, his expression tired and bored as it usually was. Even Bakugo glanced her way.

Fuck.

~~~~~~~~~

We've got art!

lazy_apocalypse has struck again with some amazing Harper art. She looks so done and it's perfect, and the thoughts surrounding her from Aizawa are on point. I honestly love it so much, so thank you! 

This one is by the amazing ministersloi! It's so accurate and I just love it. Harper looks dead tired lmao like literally mood. I totally forgot to put this in the last chapter, so I'm glad I remembered to grab it for this one, because it's super amazing! Thank you so much!